THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. I guess, we've got
somebody here from Wyoming, huh? (Laughter.) Right back there.

I was Wyoming's congressman for 10 years, elected six times. And
of course, as Craig mentioned Wyoming only had one congressman. It was
a small delegation, but it was quality. (Laughter.)

But I'm delighted to be here this afternoon. I want to thank Craig
for those words. And I'm pleased to have the opportunity to welcome all
of you to Washington. I saw Bob Novak on the way out. It's always easy
to follow Novak; he's so depressing, he leaves everybody -- (Laughter.)
So I got to do that for years. (Laughter.)

And although I know this is an annual conference, I assume some of
you are visiting for the first time, and we want to welcome you to the
Nation's Capital.

I appreciate the chance to say a few words to the members your
organization and to bring greetings to all of you from our President,
George W. Bush. (Applause.)

You've come to Washington in a busy season, and this is, of course, an
especially eventful time for our nation.

The President today is traveling once again down to the areas affected
by Hurricane Katrina. I was down just this weekend, met with officials
at the federal, state and local in Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.
The devastation, of course, is enormous, and the work of cleanup and
rebuilding is going to be one of the most large scale -- or largest
scale projects the nation has ever undertaken.

It will take time, but we believe that we will get the job done. There
is a good strategy in place, a range of assets has been deployed, our
active duty troops and National Guard are providing security and
logistic support. Emergency responders are working around the clock to
assist the victims. Local communities, churches and civic organizations
are coming together to help those in need. And the President and the
Congress are providing massive assistance to our fellow citizens.

I know that, like many others in this country, members of the National
Restaurant Association have reached out to give help to victims of the
hurricane and the floods afterwards. I want to thank you for your
compassion and for your generosity to your fellow citizens who are
trying to rebuild their lives and reclaim their future. As tough as
this has been, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the people
and the communities on the Gulf Coast are going to overcome these
difficulties and come back stronger than ever. (Applause.)

Families will return to their homes; our schools will reopen; the
economy is going to be back on track; and we will get the job done. And
when it comes to the great city of New Orleans, I think Americans are
confident that it's going to be back as an even greater city in the
future.

As we answer the crisis on the Gulf Coast, we are going to continue
working on other great priorities for the country -- to keep the economy
moving forward, to extend America's prosperity into the lives of even
more of our citizens, and to protect the nation against those who wish
to harm us.

As the President has said many times, we did not come to Washington
simply to mark time, but rather to face challenges squarely, to act when
action is required, to solve problems instead of simply passing them on
to future generations. That has been our approach from the first day we
arrived.

When we took office four-and-a-half-years ago, the economy was sliding
into recession. To get it growing again, we delivered tax relief four
times in four years. We doubled the child tax credit, decreased the
marriage penalty, cut taxes across the board. We gave small businesses
strong incentives to invest, and we phased out the death tax, so that
families and farmers can leave behind to their families more of what
they earned. (Applause.)

These were the right policies for our struggling economy, and now
we're seeing the results. Americans today have more money to spend, to
save, and invest, and they are using it to drive the economy forward.
Even allowing for the economic impact of the hurricane on the Gulf
Coast, our economy is resilient and still on an upward path. The home
ownership rate is high. Interest rates are low. Manufacturing activity
is strong. Productivity is high. We've seen job gains steadily now for
27 straight months. Since May of '03, this economy has generated over
four million new jobs, and more Americans are working today than ever
before in our history.

At the same time, federal revenues are increasing -- proving once again
that lower taxes are an incentive for entrepreneurs to start businesses,
to invest in equipment, and to hire new workers. Thanks to a pro-growth
agenda, the federal deficit has been falling more quickly than
projected.

To keep the economy on track, we're going to continue to be good
stewards of the taxpayer dollars. For the sake of long-term growth and
job creation, we need to make tax relief permanent, and we need to
maintain strong economic growth in order to generate the revenues that
the government clearly needs to meet our most urgent priorities.

We'll also keep the economy strong by delivering regulatory relief and
legal reforms that spare honest restaurant owners and other honest
entrepreneurs from junk lawsuits.

And in a time when all of us are concerned about higher gasoline prices,
we have set the nation on a better course to the future with an energy
policy -- recently enacted by the Congress -- that will expand
production, promote conservation and new technology, and make America
less dependent on foreign sources of energy.

To build a stronger, better America for the next generation, we must
also uphold the values that sustain our society -- limited government,
personal responsibility, free enterprise, reverence for life, and equal
justice under the law. And in this second term, President Bush will
continue nominating federal judges who faithfully interpret the law,
instead of legislating from the bench. (Applause.)

Throughout his time in office, the President has nominated men and women
who meet the highest standards of legal training, temperament, and
judgment -- the very kind of standards that were embodied in the late
Chief Justice, William Rehnquist. In keeping with this commitment,
President Bush has nominated a man of experience, wisdom, and character,
Judge John Roberts, to be the next Chief Justice of the United States.

Judge Roberts is universally regarded as one of the most distinguished
and talented lawyers in the country today. Two years ago he was
confirmed by unanimous consent to the second-highest court in the land.
He comes before the Senate Judiciary Committee for hearings beginning
this afternoon, and the President and I have full confidence that the
Senate will recognize the high caliber of this man and confirm him
promptly with a fair up or down vote.

In this time of testing for our country, the President and I understand
that our greatest responsibility is to provide for the active defense of
the American people.

Yesterday was the anniversary of the attacks on our country four years
ago. And even though four years have passed since 9/11, we have
continuing, urgent duties. That morning in 2001 changed everything for
our country, as we began fighting a new kind of war against determined
enemies. The terrorists behind 9/11 have declared their intention to
kill great numbers of innocent Americans, and they seek ever more deadly
means of doing so. There's a brand new tape out just today with more
threats from the al Qaeda organization.

This ongoing threat demands a comprehensive, effective response -- to
make the nation better able to respond to any future attacks, to reduce
our vulnerability, and, above all, to hunt down the terrorists before
they can hit us again.

Every morning President Bush and I receive an intelligence briefing that
includes a review of the threats we face. The enemy that appeared on
9/11 is wounded, off-balance, and on the run -- yet still very active,
still seeking new recruits, still trying to hit us.

Since 9/11 they have continued to kill at random in Casablanca, Jakarta,
Mombassa, Bali, Riyadh, Baghdad, Istanbul, Madrid, London, Sharm
el-Sheikh and elsewhere. Killers who target innocent, unsuspecting men,
women, and children during a morning rush hour, or fly passenger jets
into buildings, are not the kind of people you can bring to the
bargaining table and sit down for a reasonable exchange of ideas. Our
only option against these enemies is to find them, to fight them, and to
destroy them. (Applause.)

In these 48 months, we have been unrelenting in the effort to defend
freedom and the security of the American people. In a multinational
campaign, we continue to make progress on many fronts -- financial,
legal, military, and others. We are dealing with a network that has had
cells in countries all over the globe. Yet bit by bit, through
diplomacy and by force, with our allies and partners, we are acting to
shrink the area in which they can operate freely.

Many countries have joined us in tracking the enemy, disrupting plots
against America and our friends, destroying the training camps of
terror, and closing off their access to funding. With good allies at
our side we removed two brutal regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq. We have
persuaded the regime in Libya to voluntarily surrender its nuclear
weapons program. We have uncovered a sophisticated, large-scale network
selling nuclear technology on the international black market, and we
have shut that network down.

The United States has acted decisively, and we have sent a clear
message: We will not stand by and allow terrorists to find safe haven,
or to gain weapons for mass murder.

There is still hard work ahead, and the world is continuing to count on
the United States for leadership. We have no illusions about the
difficulty of engaging enemies who dwell in the shadows and recognize
neither the laws of warfare nor standards of morality. We cannot
predict the length or the course of the war on terror. Yet we know with
certainty that with good allies at our side, this great nation will
prevail. (Applause.)

Yet overcoming threats is only the beginning of America's
responsibilities. In the broader Middle East, we are encouraging free
markets, democracy, and tolerance -- because these are the ideas and the
aspirations that overcome violence, and turn societies to the pursuit of
peace.

Like other great duties in history, it will require decades of patient
effort, and it will be resisted by those whose only hope for power is
the spread of violence. Yet the direction of events is clear.
Afghanistan has held the first free elections in the nation's 5,000-year
history. The Palestinian people have chosen a new President and have
new hopes for democracy and peace.

In Lebanon, citizens have poured into the streets to demand freedom to
determine a peaceful future for their own country as a fully independent
member of the world community. And in Iraq, voters turned out in
incredible numbers and elected leaders who are now preparing the way for
a new constitution and a representative, pluralistic government. We are
seeing the power of freedom to change our world, and all who strive for
freedom can know that the United States of America is on their side.
(Applause.)

We know from history that the technology of warfare is always changing.
And in our own time that technology is more deadly than ever. Yet our
most basic military asset has not changed in the slightest. It is the
character, the daring, and the resourcefulness of those who man the
aircraft and the ships, and carry the rifles.

For those of you with family members in the armed forces, you can be
tremendously proud of their service. There is simply no way to
overstate the quality of our men and women in uniform, or the skill and
the bravery that we're seeing every day. American soldiers and Marines
are hanging tough, going directly into the face of danger, rooting out
deadly enemies, and dealing with them. They are going to keep going
after the terrorists, and continue training the Iraqi military, so that
Iraqis can eventually take the lead in providing for their country's
security. That mission will be successful. And when it has concluded,
the American people will welcome our military home as the heroes they
are. (Applause.)

As I said earlier, this is an eventful time for our country, and
President Bush and I recognize that the American people have entrusted
us with great responsibilities for the prosperity and security of our
country. We've set big goals. They're not always easy to achieve. And
if they were, somebody would have done them already. But it's more than
worth the effort, and we'll give it everything we have.

We're also very grateful for the support of people like you --
entrepreneurs from the heart of America who are committed to working
hard, improving your communities, creating jobs and opportunity for
others. You have our respect and admiration, and I greatly appreciate
your hospitality here today.